The first weekend of July, we experienced Dominion Camp Meeting 2025—the 40th anniversary of America’s Camp Meeting.
What a time we had! For those who were there, you know without me reminding you of what a tremendous outpouring of the Holy Spirit
we experienced. For those who were not able to be there, I encourage you to take advantage of the archived services that are
available at rodparsley.tv.
The focus of DCM was the person, the power, and the presence of the Holy Spirit. I had the privilege of ministering on Friday evening, July 4. I shared from the introductory material from my recently released book, entitled Pentecost If…. Of course, I only made it through a few paragraphs of the notes I had prepared for that service.
One of the points I emphasize in the book is that receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit is not just engaging in some kind of spiritual option that makes us more holy than others. Being filled with the Holy Spirit is a necessity to empower us to fulfill our purpose of spreading the gospel message to all the earth. With Him we can do all things. Without Him we will continue to falter and fail. Here is an excerpt from the book:
“The fundamental principles they employed [speaking of the first century church] should be our template for kingdom achievement and success. A most significant principle was, of course, that they were filled with, or baptized with the Holy Spirit. Therefore, they were distinguished by being supernaturally endowed with extraordinary power (1 Corinthians 12:4 AMP) that enabled them to accomplish the divine directive that the Lord Jesus had given them. Namely, this was to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
The Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the church, has given us this same commission. The orders have not been changed, they have not been abridged or expanded, and neither has the essential equipment to fulfill them. The modern church cannot, with any degree of expectation, hope to fulfill heaven’s assignment unaccompanied by the unparalleled power of the Holy Ghost that both energized and stabilized the original church. The thought that we can fulfill God’s plan absent God’s Holy Spirit is incomprehensible. Further, it is the ultimate expression of humanism and gross idolatry—the worship of self rather than the living God. It is a sorry spectacle over which the angels hang their heads and weep. Perhaps a refresher course from the ancient book that bears Isaiah’s name is appropriate: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways your ways, saith the Lord (Isaiah 55:8 KJV). May the Holy Ghost of God shake us back to our spiritual senses.
There’s more. When Moses was instructed to build the first earthly house for God, the wilderness tabernacle, Jehovah was specific regarding the involvement of His Spirit. “Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount (Hebrews 8:5 KJV).” (*pp. 118-119)
In the book, I go on to describe the characteristics of churches that ignore or neglect the Holy Spirit. Here is another excerpt from Pentecost If.
“How are we aware of modernized churches’ neglect or rejection of the Holy Spirit’s influence? There are many signs of confirmation.
First among these is that the church’s silence becomes deafening. As exhibited on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), one of the characteristics of the Holy Spirit’s presence is uplifted voices and an increase in volume. Upon this subject I penned a book entitled Silent No More. If ever there has been a time in the history of the church of Jesus Christ when our corporate and unified voices must be lifted with a clear and clarion call, it is at this moment, in the midst of a perverse and self-destructive culture. With that deep-throated voice of prophetic declaration we must, with conviction born of prayer, continue to proclaim an eternal message. It was first announced by Jesus and the disciples, and it is this: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:15).
Of course, such a message is bound to be rejected by generations that have been overly indulged, petted, and pampered by parents, educators, and—certainly not exempt—preachers and pastors. This trend was spawned with the Baby Boomers and continues unabated through and continuing beyond Gen Alpha (the first generation fully born in the 21st century). Members of these generations were raised on a steady diet of “you’re perfect,” “you deserve,” “you have a right,” “you should be rewarded regardless of effort or participation,” and a heaping double portion of “it’s not your fault,” “there’s always someone to blame,” and with a beautiful, syrupy sweet dessert of “your self-image is the only thing that matters.”
This has all contributed significantly to the preachers of these generations delivering messages and conducting services that are long on inclusion, positivity, and personality and short on the gospel, orthodoxy, and doctrine. In other words, Sunday morning’s 45- to 75-minute worship has become little more than a self-help pep rally for spiritual and emotional kindergartners. It requires nothing from the attendees other than, well, attending, but only when it’s convenient. It has no resemblance to a Pentecostal encounter with God complete with true worship and an anointed message from God’s Word. These require life change through surrender, repentance, and service to God.” (*pp. 119-121)
There are many reasons that preachers must preach the truth of God’s Word without compromise. There is one in particular I want to point out to you here. As you may suspect, it has nothing to do with a preacher having a reputation as a learned man in the community or developing a large social media following. Here is another pertinent paragraph from Pentecost If.
“Righteous parents correct and discipline their children when they do what is dangerous, immoral, or sinful. They employ God’s Word to do so (Romans 12:8). When the pulpit proclaims material outside the word of God and without the precious Holy Spirit to convict men’s hearts, no correction is possible. As a result, people cast off all restraint and run wild, doing anything that seems right in their own eyes, leading to cultural chaos (Proverbs 29:18 ESV and NLT). If you’re in doubt about this, simply observe it in real time in our churches, families, and communities.”
Could it be that one of the main reasons our culture is collapsing into chaos is because America’s pulpits, to a great extent, have abandoned the proclamation of the gospel? We can, and we must, raise up a standard of righteousness and holiness to stem the tide of cultural devastation that threatens to overwhelm us. The answer is simple, but at the same time profound. Perhaps Paul puts the prescription for revival most succinctly in Romans 1:16-17: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. For it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith. As it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”
That is our task, our calling, and our greatest opportunity to change our communities and our country. Let me charge you as Paul did Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2: “Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with all patience and teaching.”
The challenges will be great, but the rewards will be far greater. Our best days by far are in front of us.
Yours for the Harvest,
Dr. Rod Parsley
Founder & General Overseer
The focus of DCM was the person, the power, and the presence of the Holy Spirit. I had the privilege of ministering on Friday evening, July 4. I shared from the introductory material from my recently released book, entitled Pentecost If…. Of course, I only made it through a few paragraphs of the notes I had prepared for that service.
One of the points I emphasize in the book is that receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit is not just engaging in some kind of spiritual option that makes us more holy than others. Being filled with the Holy Spirit is a necessity to empower us to fulfill our purpose of spreading the gospel message to all the earth. With Him we can do all things. Without Him we will continue to falter and fail. Here is an excerpt from the book:
“The fundamental principles they employed [speaking of the first century church] should be our template for kingdom achievement and success. A most significant principle was, of course, that they were filled with, or baptized with the Holy Spirit. Therefore, they were distinguished by being supernaturally endowed with extraordinary power (1 Corinthians 12:4 AMP) that enabled them to accomplish the divine directive that the Lord Jesus had given them. Namely, this was to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
The Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the church, has given us this same commission. The orders have not been changed, they have not been abridged or expanded, and neither has the essential equipment to fulfill them. The modern church cannot, with any degree of expectation, hope to fulfill heaven’s assignment unaccompanied by the unparalleled power of the Holy Ghost that both energized and stabilized the original church. The thought that we can fulfill God’s plan absent God’s Holy Spirit is incomprehensible. Further, it is the ultimate expression of humanism and gross idolatry—the worship of self rather than the living God. It is a sorry spectacle over which the angels hang their heads and weep. Perhaps a refresher course from the ancient book that bears Isaiah’s name is appropriate: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways your ways, saith the Lord (Isaiah 55:8 KJV). May the Holy Ghost of God shake us back to our spiritual senses.
There’s more. When Moses was instructed to build the first earthly house for God, the wilderness tabernacle, Jehovah was specific regarding the involvement of His Spirit. “Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount (Hebrews 8:5 KJV).” (*pp. 118-119)
In the book, I go on to describe the characteristics of churches that ignore or neglect the Holy Spirit. Here is another excerpt from Pentecost If.
“How are we aware of modernized churches’ neglect or rejection of the Holy Spirit’s influence? There are many signs of confirmation.
First among these is that the church’s silence becomes deafening. As exhibited on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), one of the characteristics of the Holy Spirit’s presence is uplifted voices and an increase in volume. Upon this subject I penned a book entitled Silent No More. If ever there has been a time in the history of the church of Jesus Christ when our corporate and unified voices must be lifted with a clear and clarion call, it is at this moment, in the midst of a perverse and self-destructive culture. With that deep-throated voice of prophetic declaration we must, with conviction born of prayer, continue to proclaim an eternal message. It was first announced by Jesus and the disciples, and it is this: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:15).
Of course, such a message is bound to be rejected by generations that have been overly indulged, petted, and pampered by parents, educators, and—certainly not exempt—preachers and pastors. This trend was spawned with the Baby Boomers and continues unabated through and continuing beyond Gen Alpha (the first generation fully born in the 21st century). Members of these generations were raised on a steady diet of “you’re perfect,” “you deserve,” “you have a right,” “you should be rewarded regardless of effort or participation,” and a heaping double portion of “it’s not your fault,” “there’s always someone to blame,” and with a beautiful, syrupy sweet dessert of “your self-image is the only thing that matters.”
This has all contributed significantly to the preachers of these generations delivering messages and conducting services that are long on inclusion, positivity, and personality and short on the gospel, orthodoxy, and doctrine. In other words, Sunday morning’s 45- to 75-minute worship has become little more than a self-help pep rally for spiritual and emotional kindergartners. It requires nothing from the attendees other than, well, attending, but only when it’s convenient. It has no resemblance to a Pentecostal encounter with God complete with true worship and an anointed message from God’s Word. These require life change through surrender, repentance, and service to God.” (*pp. 119-121)
There are many reasons that preachers must preach the truth of God’s Word without compromise. There is one in particular I want to point out to you here. As you may suspect, it has nothing to do with a preacher having a reputation as a learned man in the community or developing a large social media following. Here is another pertinent paragraph from Pentecost If.
“Righteous parents correct and discipline their children when they do what is dangerous, immoral, or sinful. They employ God’s Word to do so (Romans 12:8). When the pulpit proclaims material outside the word of God and without the precious Holy Spirit to convict men’s hearts, no correction is possible. As a result, people cast off all restraint and run wild, doing anything that seems right in their own eyes, leading to cultural chaos (Proverbs 29:18 ESV and NLT). If you’re in doubt about this, simply observe it in real time in our churches, families, and communities.”
Could it be that one of the main reasons our culture is collapsing into chaos is because America’s pulpits, to a great extent, have abandoned the proclamation of the gospel? We can, and we must, raise up a standard of righteousness and holiness to stem the tide of cultural devastation that threatens to overwhelm us. The answer is simple, but at the same time profound. Perhaps Paul puts the prescription for revival most succinctly in Romans 1:16-17: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. For it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith. As it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”
That is our task, our calling, and our greatest opportunity to change our communities and our country. Let me charge you as Paul did Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2: “Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with all patience and teaching.”
The challenges will be great, but the rewards will be far greater. Our best days by far are in front of us.
Yours for the Harvest,
Dr. Rod Parsley
Founder & General Overseer